1. Field of the Disclosure
The present disclosure relates generally to a product display system, such as for displaying merchandise at a retail location.
2. Description of the Background
Retail merchandise is displayed in many different ways at a retail outlet. For example, merchandise may be displayed on shelves or in racks. The method of displaying the merchandise is often selected in a manner to enhance some consumer perception, such as value, desirability, etc.
Some methods of displaying merchandise are intended to capitalize on the so called impulse purchase. Such methods generally include displaying a small number of relatively small sized product units in a location that is both immediately noticeable to the consumer and easily accessible. Sometimes these displays are placed in a location where a consumer is likely to have to wait for some period of time, such as at checkout counters. Sometimes such displays are located along the general flow of traffic of consumers through a store and prominently displayed in a manner that literally stands apart from the surrounding products. Such product displays often include a hanging vertical display assembly including an elongate vertical body with multiple product hangers extending from one or both sides of a vertical base strip, also frequently known as strip display assemblies.
Strip display assemblies come in many different forms. One common strip display assembly includes an upstanding or hanging, generally vertical support panel with a number of product hangers, such as hooks or clips, that extend from one side of the vertical panel. Products are hung from the product hangers and a consumer may easily remove one of the products from the strip display assembly by simply lifting it off the hook or removing it from the clip. Often these strip display assemblies are single-sided, meaning that the hooks are disposed on only one side of the support panel. Such single-sided strip display assemblies however may not maximize the available amount of display space because products can only be displayed on one side of the support panel.
In order to overcome the limitations of the single-sided strip display assembly, other strip display assemblies have been adapted to be two-sided, wherein product hangers are disposed on front and back sides of a generally vertical support panel, such that products may be displayed on both the front and back sides of the strip display assembly rather than on only one side of the support panel.
Strip display assemblies often include removable product hangers that may be assembled to hang from the support panel in any of the many different locations to provide a more versatile product display system that is adaptable for displaying products of different sizes and/or in different arrangements. One common type of product display system includes a pair of vertically oriented support panels disposed adjacent each other with a space or gap formed therebetween. Each support panel includes a plurality of apertures therethrough, and each display hanger includes one or more brackets or cleats that can be inserted into various ones of the apertures to releasably mount the product hanger to the support panel. The two support panels are spaced apart so that the distal ends of the brackets of one product hanger do not interfere with the distal ends of the brackets of another product hanger when the two product hangers are mounted on opposite sides of the support panels aligned directly opposite with each other. Some general examples of systems generally similar to this are disclosed in Shea, U.S. Pat. No. 5,957,422 and in Barkdoll, U.S. Pat. No. 7,712,616. Although versatile, this style of strip display assembly often requires some assembly in the field in order to dispose the two support panels in spaced apart relation.
Another type of strip display assembly dispenses with the need to assemble the two support panels in spaced apart relation by providing only a single support panel that is vertically oriented, for example by being hung from a hook. Display hangers are connected to the vertical panel with cleats that extend through apertures through the support panel. Display hangers can be hung on either or both of the front side and the back side of the support panel. Some general examples of systems generally similar to this are disclosed in Shea, U.S. Design Pat. No. D464,510 and Shae U.S. Pat. No. 6,536,613. However, in this arrangement it is not possible to hang two display hangers on both the front and back sides of the vertical panel such that the product hangers are directly opposite or aligned with each other vertically and horizontally. Rather, it is necessary in this type of strip display assembly for one product hanger on one side of the vertical panel to be displaced vertically and/or horizontally from the other product hanger on the other side of the vertical panel so that the cleats of the one product hanger do not interfere with the other product hanger. This effect can limit the versatility of this type of strip display assembly.